Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[genXgamer]

If you require info on Seven Mile, Lae and Gurney airstrips let me know.

Here's a little gift for my friends (best viewed on tablet).
Ever want to find the locations mentioned in Operations Record Books?
https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-412534303/view

[WxTech]

To better reflect things as developing, I've created a provisional, replacement ed_map, so that when navigating around the map while zoomed out to alter stuff here and there I have an actual guide. This is just a quickly cooked up thing; when finished I'll supply something resembling it, but more finely finished. Ye Old Tyme ed_map is at top, and in my version below I've incorporated the new map_h as a terrain guide. The forest cover has increased by virtue of eliminating many rivers, as well as by narrowing down many of those old, wide 'corridors' for rivers and roads. At this scale the rivers are thin!

[Whiskey_Sierra_972]

Stunning mate!

[WxTech]

Dare to compare!

Stock versus the new map_h.tga height map. This more clearly reveals the old super-smoothing done on the landscape, as well as the multitude of seal-level rivers going all the way into the mountainous interior, creating artificial Norway-scale fjiords.

[Kopfdorfer]

Forgive if this was already mentioned , though I don't recall that it was.
The Stock NG map did not have any kind of airstrip at Kokoda.
It should have.
Airstrip today :

First built in 1932 , yes 1932.
See the Pacific Wrecks info here :
https://pacificwrecks.com/airfields/png/kokoda/

Just another veggie for the pot.

Kopfdorfer

[WxTech]

I'll first release a version having the stock airfields, located where they currently are. To follow will be a version better reflecting the historical scene. Including the addition of the field at Kokoda.

My experience with handling airfields is limited. For instance, I've yet to even start at looking into adding plates. If I eliminate some taxiway and parking plates but retain the taxi/parking points, I may have to use invisible plates. If anyone has any pointers...

[WxTech]

Continuing to refine map_h, mat_t and map_c (height, textures and coast/rivers, respectively). Here we're over the Dobodura field complex, looking SW. As previously indicated, initially I'll release a version having the stock airfields--as shown here. Note the addition of the four Embi lakes, a prominent landmark not previously included. I plan to add areas of swamp, scrub, grass and palm plantation texturing all about the map, where appropriate. I'll likely 'steal' these from the Green Hell and/or NGNB maps.

[stanislao]

 I follow your work with great interest.
I saw that in addition to the necessary reduction of the rivers and a better forest cover you are also revising the airport runways, and it is precisely on these that I think we can make a small leap in quality, for example the "Green Hell" maps, which I really appreciate , have a substance defect that greatly reduces their realism, the airport runways appear blurry and milky during taxiing, with jagged edges that blend very little with the surrounding terrain. Certainly better in this regard are those included in the "Ambon-Darwin" map by Mixx, even if in my opinion the colors should be toned down a lot,
The absolute perfection of airport runways, in fact, can only be found in the sublime Bee's Rabaul map that you've already had the opportunity to further improve. Well, good job anyway.

[genXgamer]

Agree Mixx's airstrips look great, surprisingly even up close.
Unfortunately they also use up precious texture slots hence the Northern Territory and northern Western Australia are rather green (didn't help someone kept suggesting more airfields).
Being a 1942 map and only simple single airstrips required, Mixx's method could be employed.

One thing I would ask of WxTech is that those stupid grass taxi strips shown in his screenshot be removed and a cleared/dirt/mud texture be placed around the strip.
It's also an opportunity to use the fantastic palm plantation and kunai grass mods as mentioned in reply #30.

[stanislao]

   Absolutely agree!   

[WxTech]

Going farther down the rabbit hole.  😉

I've adopted textures from Green Hell, for better variety and more colour. Unlike Green Hell, which uses almost no 'layer cake' forest cover, I'll have the fully forested areas only use the layered texturing.

I've removed the gazillion palm tree objects from Port Moresby (and hugely reduced the extent of what in the stock map is a vast megalopolis, in terms of areal size).

I have the forest going as close to the shorelines as possible, where warranted; the stock map's idiotically wide beach zones are gone.

I've re-worked the handling of textures along shorelines, so that now the shallows are drawn. Previously the shore transitioned abruptly from land to deep blue sea.

I'm debating adding coral reefs, which in a number of areas are quite extensive. This will notably increase the size of map_C.tga, which might (?) have some impact on performance. Perhaps I'll offer two map_C.tga's to choose from; one without and the other with coral reefs.

I've decided to rid the airfields of their silly taxiways. This is getting into new territory for me, with my fairly limited experience of doing only minor adjustments to airfields. One concern is the ground roughness. With no taxiway or apron plates, is it necessary to lay down a ground plate to cover the area where planes will taxi? Or are the load.ini Airfield texture slots automatically treated as properly smooth?

[genXgamer]

Hi Glenn

Here's some of my thoughts.

Glad you reduced the the size of Port Moresby as it runs right up to Seven Mile Drome (which appears to be in wrong place anyway).
Coral reefs absolutely necessary at Port Moresby.
Port Moresby should be drier more barren than other parts of New Guinea, no need for palm trees just bushland similar to northern Australia and plenty of your kunai grass.

Removing the grass taxi plates won't make any difference as the terrain is already dead flat.
Otherwise you can always manually flatten an area in the map builder.
Under no circumstances should you change runway or taxi points as this will affect previously made missions.
The airfield textures are no different than any of the previous textures.